Tuesday Apple Rumors: 12M iPad Minis to Ship in Q1

by Christopher Freeburn | January 29, 2013 1:24 pm

[1]Here are your Apple rumors[2] and AAPL news items for today:

Mini Might: Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL[3]) will ship 12 million iPad Mini units during the first quarter of this year[4], AppleInsider notes. The estimate comes from Asian industry sources, which say that production problems encountered by Apple’s manufacturing partners in producing the smaller-sized iPad have now been surmounted. Late last year, reports suggested that supplies of the iPad Mini were constrained due to those production problems.

Rallying the Troops: After announcing the company’s quarterly results last week, CEO Tim Cook spoke with company employees[5], 9to5Mac notes. The company’s record earnings and sales didn’t meet analysts’ lofty predictions, sending its shares tumbling. Cook told employees that producing new products was Apple’s focus. He said that the company would offer more employee perks and would seek greater transparency about working conditions at its Chinese manufacturing partners. Addressing concerns over the situation at Apple’s Retail Stores, which experienced confusion over reports of slashed pay and working hours last year, Cook said that the company was looking for a new retail head and that it would seek to improve retail staff morale. Cook also noted that iOS devices generate more Internet traffic compared to devices running Google‘s (NASDAQ:GOOG[6]) Android operating system.

Back Again: Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM[7]) regained the title of world’s most valuable publicly-traded company from Apple on Friday, but its time at the top was short[8], the Contra Costa Times notes. On Friday, with Apple shares trading down, Apple’s market capitalization dipped to $413 billion, compared to $418 billion for the oil giant. However, on Monday, Apple share rose 2.3%, boosting its market capitalization to $422.4 billion, while Exxon shares dipped 0.7%, lowering its total value to $415.4 billion. Last week, Apple’s shares dropped sharply after the company announced record quarterly sales and profits, but still fell short of inflated Wall Street expectations. The company took the title of world’s most valuable company from Exxon in August.

For more about the company, check out our previous Apple Rumors[9] stories.